1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the use of contactless communication technologies to allow for the secure communication of data, such as instructions, to an operating device that performs production and/or testing operations.
2. Description of the Related Art
Although wireless devices are used ubiquitously to receive data from and issue commands to control various consumer electronics, their use with industrial operating devices, particularly those employed in the manufacture of pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical products, has been limited due to legal requirements and the risk that the data could be tampered with. Indeed, utilizing a wireless device and/or an open network architecture increases the likelihood that the data may be manipulated from an external source and that the operating device may be infected by a computer virus, Trojan, worm, or other malicious code. This manipulation of operating devices could potentially have adverse effects for industrially-manufactured products, particularly for drug products manufactured with industrial equipment, and lead to grave repercussions on public health and safety.
Methods such as encryption and password protection have been used to try and improve the security of the industrial operations. However these methods have drawbacks, such as the need for significant computational power in encryption and the relative ease with which passwords may be compromised.
An object of the present invention is to propose a system, a network and a method that make the transmission of data via contactless communications to an operating device used in industrial processes more secure, preventing the manipulation of sensitive data.